Lawmakers were stunned to learn - and we join them — that such gifts, which would look like a bribe in any sensible universe — were even legal in the first place. Banning them is a good first step toward removing the cloud of corruption that seems to have taken up permanent residence on the hill high above Third Street.

The Senate State Government Committee, which Smucker chairs, was set to consider the ban legislation on Monday. A separate change to the Senate’s internal operating rules could be considered Tuesday. And both the rules change and the legislation could be put to final votes later this week, a spokesman for the chamber’s Republican majority said.

From Bonusgate and Computergate to the Pennsylvania Turnpike ‘Pay to Play’ scandal of last year, Pennsylvanians have good reason to be distrustful of their elected leaders. And that’s too bad. Because along with the scoundrels and state prison inmates are some dedicated public servants who are working to advance the common good and leave the state a better place than when they found it.

But even a few commonsense reforms, including sane campaign finance laws; eliminating the unvouchered per diem payments that lawmakers use to cover their food and lodging, reducing a reduction in the size of the Legislature, and a total ban on gifts to all elected and appointed officials could go a long way toward restoring the public’s battered trust.

Corbett’s response

In an interview over the weekend, Republican Gov. Tom Corbett argued that a gift ban would be harder to enact than it appears at first blush. What would constitute a gift? Would be there be a minimum value? If a friend took you to dinner and picked up the tab, would that count as a gift? Total transparency — combined with vigilance — the governor argued would be a sensible first step.

And we agree. But it should not be the only step. A ban on cash gifts would still allow lobbyists and influence-peddlers to wine and dine lawmakers. It would allow them to fly elected leaders to Texas for lavish Super Bowl parties and it would continue to enable the surreal Harrisburg culture that grants access to monied interests that the average voter can only dream about.

The only solution, in our judgment, is a total ban on all gifts to all state officials. In the absence of reforms to campaign finance laws that allow the deep-pocketed to shower money on lawmakers, it is one of the only ways to level the playing field between special interests and the average voter.

And there’s something you can do, too. Add your name to our petition calling on lawmakers to adopt, and for Corbett to sign, a total ban on gifts. We have a target of 1,000 signatures. And when we hit it, we’ll present that petition to lawmakers and urge them to take action.